We are an independent, creative and strategic agency dedicated to giving our clients more of what they want, and less of what they don't.

We filter out the nonsense and the noise, the prima donnas and the jerks. We eliminate the bloat, bureaucracy and crazy overhead that gets in the way of doing great work. And so far, nobody seems to miss any of it.

We filter out the nonsense and the noise, the prima donnas and the jerks. We eliminate the bloat, bureaucracy and crazy overhead that gets in the way of doing great work. And so far, nobody seems to miss any of it.

We’re small, but big is in our DNA. We’re experienced, big-agency professionals who left that world to find a better way.

We specialize in clear, sharply-refined thinking grounded in insight and understanding, coupled with a powerful brand of creativity. We create ideas that are simple, pure and potent enough to change the way people think, how they feel and even what they do.

We specialize in clear, sharply-refined thinking grounded in insight and understanding, coupled with a powerful brand of creativity. We create ideas that are simple, pure and potent enough to change the way people think, how they feel and even what they do.

John began his career as a trainee copywriter at Leo Burnett. He worked his way up to eventually become Chief Creative Officer of the largest creative department in America. John led Burnett to higher standings in the creative rankings than ever before. Simultaneously, the agency won more awards for advertising effectiveness than any other agency. Since founding The Distillery Project in 2012, this particular brand of creativity has earned Small Agency of the Year recognition from Ad Age in 2012, 2014 and 2017. In other words, our work works.

Per Jacobson

Founding Partner, Creative Director

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Per Jacobson

Founding Partner, Creative Director

Long ago, Per went all the way to Norway; a country full of people named Per to get his start in this industry. Once Per learned the whole point of advertising was to stand out, he returned to America and joined Ogilvy & Mather in New York to work on IBM. His "Blue Letterbox" campaign received numerous accolades, including Adweek's Campaign of the Year. In 1998, Per joined Leo Burnett. He soon partnered with John and together they worked across the agency portfolio on everything from selling beer to saving orphans.

Ben Kline

Founding Partner, Chief Strategy Officer

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Ben Kline

Founding Partner, Chief Strategy Officer

Before joining The Distillery Project, Ben served as Chief Marketing Officer for Ogilvy & Mather. Prior to that, he was the Chief Strategy Officer at Leo Burnett. And at one time at Wieden + Kennedy, he ran the global account of a teeny little gym shoe company called Nike. His insightful understanding of both human behavior and the business of marketing has led to helping create inspiringly creative conversations for a range of clients as wide as Miller High Life, Kimberly-Clark, Prudential, United Airlines, GM, Nike, P&G, Amazon, American Family Insurance, Medtronic and Sports Illustrated.

Kim Tanner

Head of Operations

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Kim Tanner

Head of Operations

Kim joined The Distillery Project from Leo Burnett, where she got her start as a Client Service Associate. Kim quickly rose through the ranks, eventually claiming the title of Senior Vice President, Director of Operations where she managed the day to day functioning of the Kellogg's account across the US. There are also numerous reports that she is one of the nicest human beings inhabiting the planet.

Nik Traxler

Head of Production

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Nik Traxler

Head of Production

Nik is also a Leo Burnett alumni but his natural curiosity led him on a tour of duty at companies and agencies including Google Creative Lab, Wieden+Kennedy, Sid Lee, Johannes Leonardo, Y&R NY and The Martin Agency. And the opportunity to work with brands like Nike, ESPN, Discover Card, Walmart, LG and Heineken. His experience in both traditional and interactive production provides our clients with a truly integrated perspective on how to bring work to life and even earned him a nomination for agency producer of the year by Boards Magazine.